The present invention is primarily directed toward a device for use as a point-of-sale housing, but may also find application outside of retail environments.
Conventionally, for keeping temperature-sensitive foodstuffs, especially beverages, chilled, an electrically refrigerated cabinet has been used. More recently, convenience stores have used point-of-sale insulated containers filled with iced-down beverages. There are numerous problems associated with either method of cooling individually packaged beverages.
Electrically refrigerated cabinets tend to be large, heavy, cumbersome units that are not mobile and need electricity. These cabinets generally require a substantial capital investment and can require expensive periodic maintenance. If the unit fails or a power outage occurs, the units are ineffective during the interim.
As a solution to the aforementioned shortcomings of an electrically refrigerated unit, insulated beverage coolers have been made that chill the beverages with ice in an attractive, mobile display. These coolers generally include tubs that hold individually packaged beverages together with ice, keeping the beverages in contact with the ice and cooled. Although these coolers are generally more mobile and convenient than electrically powered, refrigerated units, they also have drawbacks.
Placing food or beverages on ice, although the food or beverage may be individually packaged, provides the opportunity for contamination of the container of the food or beverage by germs from customers transmitted by melted ice. Sometimes the preferred product is packaged in a carton, like milk, and the carton becomes soggy after prolonged contact in ice and melted water. The melted ice may splash out of the cooler, thus creating a slip-and-fall hazard. The beverages may eventually become completely immersed within the ice and water. This is uncomfortable and inconvenient for the customer selecting a beverage, and also presents a health risk due to the spread of germs within the ice and water mixture. The accumulation of water as a cooling medium has the undesirable effect of impairing the degree of sanitation achievable and maintainable. There is a need, therefore, for a chilled beverage container that can maintain the required cooling effect on its contents while being mobile, efficient, sanitary, and inexpensive.
The present invention fulfills this need in the art by providing a point-of-sale display including a vessel having a bottom and peripheral side walls for selling containers of chilled food items. The side walls contain thermally insulating material. A plurality of removable panels each contains a material that is liquid at room temperature and has a freezing point of about 32 degrees Fahrenheit or colder, and the panels are configured to fit together to form vertical walls about at least one interior chamber in the vessel. The panels can be placed in a freezer at a temperature below the freezing point of the liquid until the liquid freezes, and then placed in the vessel to form an interior chamber in the vessel. Containers of food items (including, without limitation, beverages) to be sold may be loaded into the interior chamber and kept cold by their proximity to the panels. The bottom of the vessel may also contain thermally insulating material. The vessel is generally located in a retail store at room temperature (i.e. in the range of 65-75 degrees Fahrenheit).
In one embodiment, the vessel is quadrilateral with sides and ends, and there are seven panels sized to be placed into the vessel, with one panel on each of opposed vessel ends, two panels on each of opposed vessel sides, and one panel extending between the vessel sides spaced from each vessel end. The panel extending between the vessel sides preferably extends fully between the vessel sides, and the panels on each vessel side together do not extend fully along the side, so that the panel extending between the vessel sides separates the panels on the vessel sides. Preferably the ends of the panel extending between the vessel sides are indented to receive the panels on the vessel side, providing an interfit of the panels with one another within the vessel.
A lid to cover the chilled food items and panels within the vessel may also be included.
The vessel may have an outer wall arranged to receive promotional graphics for the merchandising of chilled food items. The vessel may have a barrel-shaped external wall.
When food items are loaded in the interior chamber while chilled to 33.9 degrees Fahrenheit, and the panels are loaded after being frozen solid in a conventional freezer for 16 hours, the food items are typically kept at a temperature of below 36 degrees Fahrenheit for 27 hours, and below 41 degrees Fahrenheit for 37 hours, and below 45 degrees Fahrenheit for 44 hours.
The plurality of removable panels is preferably removable from the vessel by simply lifting vertically from the vessel once the lid (if any) is opened. This permits the panels to be returned to a freezer for re-freezing and reuse.
The invention also provides a method of selling chilled food items including locating an insulated vessel in a retail location, chilling a plurality of removable panels, each of which contains a material that is liquid at room temperature and has a freezing point of about 32 degrees Fahrenheit or colder until the liquid freezes, placing the chilled panels in the insulated vessel in a pattern to form vertical walls about at least one interior chamber in the vessel; and loading containers of food items to be sold into the interior chamber. The method includes keeping the containers of food items cold by proximity to the panels for an extended period of time so that they are available to customers in the retail location, and permitting customers to remove containers of food items from the vessel and pay for them.
The method may include maintaining a lid over the chilled panels and containers of food items in the vessel while the containers are available to the customers.
In a preferred embodiment of the method, the food items are loaded in the interior chamber while chilled to 32-35 degrees Fahrenheit, the panels are frozen overnight in a conventional freezer, and the food items are kept at a temperature within two degrees Fahrenheit of their temperature upon loading for at least 24 hours while the vessel is in a room temperature environment (up to 75 degrees Fahrenheit).
If the food items are bottled beverages, the act of loading may include loading at least 48 bottles. Alternatively, the act of loading may include loading at least 96 bottles.
If the vessel is quadrilateral, the placement of the chilled panels in the insulated vessel may include placing two panels on opposed vessel ends, two panels each on opposed vessel sides and one panel extending between the vessel sides spaced from each vessel end and interfitting the panel extending between the vessel sides with the panels on each opposed vessel side.
The method preferably includes displaying promotional graphics on an outer surface of the vessel to identify and promote the sale of the contents of the vessel.
Typically, the chilling of the plurality of removable panels takes place in a freezer location separate from the retail location but within the same building as the retail location.
The invention also provides a storage bin for storage of chilled items including a vessel having a bottom and peripheral side walls. The side walls contain thermally insulating material. A plurality of removable panels each contains a material that is liquid at room temperature and has a freezing point of about 32 degrees Fahrenheit or colder, and the panels are configured to fit together to form vertical walls about at least one interior chamber in said vessel. The panels can be placed in a freezer below the freezing point of the liquid until the liquid freezes, the panels can be placed in the vessel to form an interior chamber in the vessel, and items to be chilled may be loaded into the interior chamber and kept cold by their proximity to the panels.